Shattering the Silence: An Autobiographical Account of Workplace Bullying/Abuse
Abstract
In March of 2021, I was awarded the coveted Promotion and Tenure from a USG institution. In July of that same year, I walked away from the accolade as well as a twenty-year career in education, after becoming a target of workplace bullying/abuse. After I departed, I learned that workplace abuse was known as a "silent epidemic," as employee voices became muted due to fear of retaliation such as being "blacklisted" by institutions of higher learning. Unfortunately, I also learned that current employment and EEOC laws do not protect workers from workplace abuse, even when the target is considered a member of a protected class, such as I was. This paper explores particular patterns of behavior I have discovered in relation to workplace abuse by analyzing my own experience after being targeted, as well as other examples I have studied. Given the USG's current assault against academic freedom, discussions of workplace abuse is particularly prevalent as professors are being potentially positioned to become targets of their own workplace bullying/abuse story. Professors should know their rights. Interestingly, much has been discussed about bullying in schools, but the field of Curriculum Studies has been relatively silent regarding workplace bullying/abuse. It is time to shatter that silence and bring attention to an epidemic that shall remain silent no more.
Presentation Description
.
Location
Room 109
Publication Type and Release Option
Presentation (Open Access)
Recommended Citation
Pollock, Beth, "Shattering the Silence: An Autobiographical Account of Workplace Bullying/Abuse" (2022). Curriculum Studies Summer Collaborative. 24.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/cssc/2022/2022/24
Shattering the Silence: An Autobiographical Account of Workplace Bullying/Abuse
Room 109
In March of 2021, I was awarded the coveted Promotion and Tenure from a USG institution. In July of that same year, I walked away from the accolade as well as a twenty-year career in education, after becoming a target of workplace bullying/abuse. After I departed, I learned that workplace abuse was known as a "silent epidemic," as employee voices became muted due to fear of retaliation such as being "blacklisted" by institutions of higher learning. Unfortunately, I also learned that current employment and EEOC laws do not protect workers from workplace abuse, even when the target is considered a member of a protected class, such as I was. This paper explores particular patterns of behavior I have discovered in relation to workplace abuse by analyzing my own experience after being targeted, as well as other examples I have studied. Given the USG's current assault against academic freedom, discussions of workplace abuse is particularly prevalent as professors are being potentially positioned to become targets of their own workplace bullying/abuse story. Professors should know their rights. Interestingly, much has been discussed about bullying in schools, but the field of Curriculum Studies has been relatively silent regarding workplace bullying/abuse. It is time to shatter that silence and bring attention to an epidemic that shall remain silent no more.
